


Give Me The Peace To Move On

by NightValeian



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Character Turned Into a Ghost, Finding Peace as a Ghost, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Character Death, Mutual Pining, Spirits, Spoilers for Episode 26 and after
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-21
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-06-30 20:04:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15758733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightValeian/pseuds/NightValeian
Summary: Caduceus Clay lived a solitary life until the restless spirit of Mollymauk Tealeaf appears in his home asking for help.Spoilers after Episode 26.





	1. Chapter 1

Caduceus Clay looked up from an empty teacup to see a stranger staring at him from across the room. The door hadn’t opened, no one had been here when he’d arrived home earlier that afternoon, so it was certainly a surprise to see someone there.

 

“Hello.”

 

The stranger was a lavender tiefling with piercing red eyes. They had two horns curling out of a mess of dark purple hair and a giant bloody hole in their shirt near the center of their chest. Whatever wound had been there was no longer there, but it had been gruesome at one point.

 

Whatever had caused that injury had probably killed them.

 

“I wasn’t expecting company. I’ll put on a new pot of tea.”

 

The tiefling gives him an odd look, tilting their head to study him as he stood and began to move about the room to prepare the new pot for the two of them. Obviously, spirits couldn’t drink tea, let alone hold a cup, but he always found that the offer of tea always soothed a distressed spirit.

 

The tea making process takes some time; Caduceus talks to fill the silence. His guest doesn’t seem to be ready to talk just yet, so he talks enough for the two of them. He narrates his tea making methods, talks about his family, what he does for a living. He mentions he hasn’t had a spiritual guest in a very long time, but then again if the spirit was there, they obviously needed his help.

 

The tiefling still says nothing.

 

He sets the table for two; a teacup filled to the brim at each place, a small plate of biscuits in the middle of the table. Caduceus takes a seat and motions to the empty chair across from him, though he knows the spirit won’t take him up on the offer.

 

They stare at one another for a long time before Caduceus lowers his gaze to his cup, taking a sip of his tea once it’s cooled.

 

“What is your name, spirit?”

 

“Mollymauk Tealeaf.”

 

The tiefling’s voice is rough, unused. Perhaps it was the first time they’d spoken since they passed; Caduceus wonders how long it had been for them. Days? Months? Years?

 

“Hello, Mollymauk Tealeaf. I am Caduceus Clay.” He said politely, tone calm. “What can I do for you?”

 

“ _Do_ for me?”

 

“Sometimes spirits find their way into my home after they pass because they simply can’t move on. Usually it is because they have unfinished business in the living world. I do my best to help the spirit achieve peace, so they can move on.”

 

Caduceus sighs, leans back into the back of his chair.

 

“Of course, there are things I cannot do. It’s against my beliefs to bring a soul back from the dead so if you came for resurrection, I apologize.”

 

“I don’t want that.”

 

Mollymauk’s hands clench into fists at his side; a telltale sign of anger and Caduceus makes another guess as to what the tiefling has come to him for.

 

“I apologize, friend, but I cannot carry out revenge on your behalf.”

 

“I don’t want that either.”

 

Caduceus pauses, looking at the tiefling curiously. Mollymauk doesn’t look angry, but more upset, unsettled.

 

“My duty as a grave cleric gives me the responsibility of helping restless spirits find peace, but if you cannot tell me what you need—“

 

“My friends...My friends need help.”

 

“Your friends?”

 

“The Mighty Nein. Caleb, Beau, Nott.” Mollymauk says with a bit more confidence in his voice. The more they interacted with Caduceus, the more comfortable they became. “A group of slavers has taken the rest of our party captive. They’re strong and my friends need all the help they can get.”

 

“I assume that these slavers are the reason you have that hole in your shirt?” Caduceus asked, raising an eyebrow curiously. “What a painful way to die.”

 

Mollymauk touches the hole in his shirt, fingering the dried blood. It seemed like it was the first time they had ever even looked at themselves in this form since they had awoken. “Bastard ran me through. I could only spit on him before I died.” He admitted. “But it’s not about me, not anymore. You’re a cleric, you said. You can help them.”

 

“You’re asking me to join your friends and help them rescue your other friends?”

 

“Would you?”

 

Caduceus studies Mollymauk for a few moments. The tiefling seems desperate for aide; their friends were obviously very important to them and to not see the journey through to the end was going to prevent them from moving onto the other side.

 

He would be no better than the man who killed Mollymauk if he turned them away.

 

“As a matter of fact, I will.”

 

Mollymauk’s smile is wide and genuine at his response, taking a seat at last in the chair across from Caduceus. Their hands do not reach for the cup in front of them, but they’re aware of its place on the table as they situate their arms to avoid it. The air about them is confident, reckless, full of passion and determination; Caduceus feels like this is who Mollymauk truly was before the end.

 

“Well then, Mr. Clay, was it? I suppose we’re in business.”

 

Caduceus sips his tea, a smile curling on his own lips.

 

“I suppose we are. Now, tell me about this ‘bastard’ who killed you.”

 

Mollymauk’s red eyes roll back dramatically. “Well, his name is Lorenzo and let me start off by saying he is by far the nastiest bastard I’ve ever encountered.” He began. “And I’ve been in the circus!”

 

Caduceus raised an eyebrow curiously. “You were in the circus?” He asked. “I have never been to one before. What was it like?”

 

If possible, Mollymauk’s smile widened even more and they leaned forward on their arms on the table.

 

“Oh, Mister Clay, settle in. This story is going to be a long one.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caduceus learns more about Mollymauk's friends, then meets them face to face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I'm putting a Caleb/Molly tag on this fic because of how much hinting there is toward there being some kind of almost relationship between the two from this point forward. I dunno how it works out here on AO3 with tag clogging and such, but I feel like you should know so I'm tagging it? 
> 
> If you think it's unnecessary, I can remove the tag, but...well, here we are.

After a few days of living with Mollymauk, it was like they had always lived there. They made themselves right at home with little to no fuss, usually draped dramatically across the couch and talking about every little thing that popped up in their head.

 

Caduceus doesn’t mind, not really. Having company, even very talkative company, is a nice change from the typical silence.

 

He learns a lot in the time that Mollymauk is with him. They were quite the storyteller, after all, weaving the most amazing tales that Caduceus didn’t think he could believe and yet the way the stories were told made him sit on the edge of his seat with interest. 

 

Mollymauk had been all over the world while traveling the circus, to places Caduceus had never even heard of. He couldn’t imagine having a life like that when his own was so stationary, but Mollymauk seemed much more lively when they talked about what their life had been that it was obvious those moments had a big impact on who they had become after waking up in that grave two years earlier. 

 

Despite having a thousand and one stories to tell, Mollymauk never seemed to stop talking about the Mighty Nein. 

 

“So there’s Beau. She’s a monk. A mean thing, that one, sometimes, but she can really pack a punch. She’s a good friend. A bit socially awkward but a good friend.” Mollymauk explains, following behind Caduceus as he moved about the property to complete his daily routines. “Nott is a goblin with sticky fingers and a drinking problem, but she’s an absolute delight. She looks a lot like a child, but I’m pretty sure she’s close to an adult in goblin years.”

 

“Beau is a monk and Nott is a goblin.” Caduceus repeats carefully, trying to commit this information to memory. If he were going to be traveling with the party, he really needed to remember who they were. “Who else?”

 

“Jester is a tiefling like me, just blue. Our cleric who worships the Traveler. Full of life and mischief.” Mollymauk continues, expression thoughtful. “Fjord is a half-orc. Good head on his shoulders, a good leader. He got into some nasty business in his past and now he spits up saltwater and eats things he probably shouldn’t.” There was a long pause, a heavy sigh filling the silence after a moment. “They were taken by the slavers.”

 

Caduceus has no response for that. “Jester and Fjord.” He says instead, stopping to check on the flowers sprouting from a nearby grave. 

 

“Yasha was... _ is  _ my best friend. She’s really tall and pretty quiet, but she loves flowers. Keeps them pressed in her little book.” Mollymauk says next, looking off into the forest, fingers curling into fists at their side. “I’ve known her since I woke up in this body. She’s always been there for me and the one time she needed me to be there...I died. She was taken and I died. What kind of friend is that?”

 

“It’s not your fault she was taken.” Caduceus said quietly. What else was there to say? “It was not your fault any of them were taken and it’s certainly not your fault that you were killed on your way to rescue them.”

 

Mollymauk shakes their head, smile sad and pained. There was obviously a lot of guilt on their shoulders and no amount of comforting would bring Mollymauk any close to closure. “And then there’s Caleb…” They murmur. 

 

For a long moment, Mollymauk says nothing which causes Caduceus to turn away from his work to look at them instead, a frown on his face. 

 

“What do I need to know about Caleb?” He presses gently. 

 

Mollymauk looks like they’re in some kind of physical pain, mouth opening and closing as if trying to find the words to describe Caleb to him. After a moment, they seem to finally find them. 

 

“Caleb is...a human. A wizard if you can believe. Dirty, quiet, nose always in a book. Got some ghosts in his past I never got to learn about.” Mollymauk says quietly, arms coming up to wrap around their middle. “He’s got this cat. Frumpkin? Sweet little thing. Never seen a man love something so much.”

 

Caduceus tilts his head a bit, ears drooping. He doesn’t understand why Mollymauk looks so sad when there were nothing but nice things to be said about Caleb. Mollymauk always spoke of Caleb in high regard; why would talking about him like this make them sad?

 

“Mister Mollymauk? Are you alright?”

 

Mollymauk laughs, but it isn’t their normal laugh. This laugh is loud and broken, forced out from their lips like it hurts them to do so. It was so unlike the normal, loud, full-bodied laughter he’d heard from Mollymauk in the last few days. “Oh, Mister Clay, I’m afraid that I have many regrets. So many things I should have done and said.”

 

“With Caleb?”

 

Mollymauk glances at him sharply, a silent warning, before they turn their back to him. “With all of them.” They say simply, dismissive.

It’s a lie, but Mollymauk adds nothing more and with that, the conversation is over.

Mollymauk doesn’t mention Caleb for the rest of the day. 

 

* * *

The Might Nein arrive on Caduceus’s doorstep two days after Mollymauk’s arrival. 

They were all just as Mollymauk described to the point Caduceus could easily identify all of them based on appearance alone. There was Beau, Nott, Caleb, Keg, along with another firbolg that Mollymauk hadn’t mentioned and therefore probably didn’t know. 

Caduceus prided himself on his acting that afternoon; they had no idea he already knew all of them before they even walked in the door.  

Meanwhile, Mollymauk is over the moon to see the group, floating in-between all of them to get a closer look at all of them. The group, of course, cannot see the tiefling, not like Caduceus can, but Mollymauk is thrilled to see them regardless.

“Oh, look at you all.” Mollymauk coos sadly, drifting past Beauregard to brush at a loose strand of hair that had come loose from her bun. “Look like you’ve barely slept in days. Poor darlings. Can’t even keep yourselves looking put together.”

Mollymauk is right. The group looks rough, like they’ve been traveling with little to no sleep for days. They were obviously exhausted, at the end of their rope, but they all held their heads high. Beauregard and Caleb seemed to be holding their heads the highest, possibly in attempts to keep morale high for the others.

Mollymauk reaches out to straighten the collar of Caleb’s coat, but visibly falters when their hand simply phases through him. Caleb shivers, holds his coat a bit tighter around himself and Mollymauk withdraws his hand, expression wounded.

“Can’t even feel me, can you, darling?” He asks sadly. 

Caduceus forces his eyes away from Mollymauk’s face, trying to focus on the matter at hand. It was painful to see the spirit so close to their loved ones, but unable to touch or talk to them. 

“Well, what can I do for you all?”

Like Mollymauk, they’d come to him hoping for help. 

The first thing they asked of him was resurrection for their friend Mollymauk which causes a particularly tortured look to cross the tiefling’s face. Caduceus denies their request, explains his beliefs, and the group lets it go though they seemed incredibly disappointed by his answer. 

The second thing they ask for is help finding their friends and Caduceus pretends to mull it over, as if he were conflicted on offering his services despite how he already knew he was going to accept.

It was, after all, why he was here.

“They came all this way for me…” Mollymauk murmurs, hand over their heart. “They came to you just to ask if you could bring me back to life.”

Caduceus can see just how emotional Mollymauk is over this realization. He doesn’t mean to stare and intrude, but it was always so fascinating to see how spirits coped while watching their loved ones. 

He must have been staring for too long because the goblin, Nott, looks to where he was staring at Mollymauk and frowns. Mollymauk smiles shakily at her regardless of the fact she cannot see them. 

“Is...ah...everything alright?”

Caduceus blinks, looking away from Mollymauk and back to the group in surprise. How long had they been sitting in silence, watching him watch nothing?

“Oh. Yes. I believe everything will be.”

Caduceus then smiles brightly, ignoring the odd looks that the group members give one another. 

“I believe we’ve come together for a reason. So I’m coming with you to offer my services.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to find the right voice for everyone, thank you for your patience! 
> 
> Let me know what you thought?   
> Comments really make my day!

**Author's Note:**

> This is how I cope with denial and heartache.
> 
> Let me know what you think. I'm trying so hard.


End file.
